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Research Coins: Electronic Auction

 
452, Lot: 720. Estimate $150.
Sold for $600. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

Moneyer issues of Imperatorial Rome. L. Papius Celsus. 45 BC. AR Denarius (18mm, 3.97 g, 8h). Rome mint. Laureate head of Triumphus right; trophy behind shoulder / She-wolf standing right, placing stick on fire; on right, eagle standing left, fanning the flames. Crawford 472/2; CRI 83; Sydenham 965; Papia 3; Type as RBW 1649. Toned, banker’s mark on obverse. VF. Rare.


From the Andrew McCabe Collection. Ex Naville Numismatics 7 (11 May 2014), lot 127 (hammer £230); C. Crippa FPL (Spring/Summer 2001), no. 72 (£It. 370,000).

The celator used a remarkable story-telling device on a coin: the eagle in the Lanuvium foundation story comes from outside the reverse circle of die, as if from another world (the world of the gods). This is no accident as all dies of this type have the eagle half in and half out of “our world”. The story goes that when a fire broke out spontaneously in the forest, a wolf brought some dry wood in his mouth and threw it upon the fire, and an eagle fanned the flame with the motion of his wings, but a fox, after wetting his tail in the river, was trying to put it out. The wolf and eagle got the upper hand and the fox went away; the location of the fire became where Lanuvium was founded. A parallel can be seen in the early quadrigatus types – almost two centuries earlier – where the thunderbolt of Zeus clearly passes through the border circle. Thus, this is a coin-engraving visual device to show a gift of the gods that I don't recall having read about in numismatic literature. The nature of the strike on this coin makes this especially clear. The obverse type of Triumphus is also much scarcer than that with Juno Sospita, and again, in this instance, we have been lucky with strike as both a full legend and trophy are clear. [Andrew McCabe]